JENNIE
I shouldn't have been so surprised when the driver pulled through a familiar pair of haunting black gates—after all, what better setting for a vampire's ball than a reclusive manor resembling Dracula's summer home?
Fear held me captive as I stared up at the imposing mansion and tried to talk myself out of sprinting back to the city in a pair of heels—the main reason being that I didn't know which direction the city even was.
"Miss?" the driver prompted.
He stood on the pavement, holding the door open, and I had no choice but to climb out. I was alone. Jisoo had stayed behind and for the first time, I didn't have an escort.
You're at the mouth of the beast, Jennie, my conscience warned as my gaze flickered over the impassive fortress of dark stone. Enter and you will be gobbled down whole …
Apprehension swelled within me as the wind tore at my hair and played with the skirt of my gown. I must have looked ridiculous, standing there like an imbecile while the car drove off.
In or out, Jennie? I wondered. The two footmen watched me from their positions near the doors and their empty gazes revealed no hint of what awaited me within.
You could always run …
In the end, fate decided for me.
"What in the world are you doing out here, darling?" The sultry voice accompanied the arm that slipped through mine, forming a link. Alarm raced down my spine. I had an uncomfortable suspicion as to who my new companion was, even before I turned to take in the beautiful woman standing beside me.
In the dim glow of the light filtering through the manor windows Somi gleamed. Her hair streamed in the wind behind her, eyes sparkling mischievously from behind a scarlet facemask. A matching gown hugged her body tightly in all the right places, putting my elegant ensemble to shame.
"You'll catch your death out here!" She told me with mock-concern. "It's freezing out."
I didn't have the nerve to mention that technically, the creatures inside were colder.
She's a predator, Jennie, a part of me warned. She can smell your fear. As if to prove it, her nostrils flared as the wind picked up and those red lips parted into a malicious smile.
"Have you considered my offer yet?" She wondered. "Or, have you decided to go above my head and get your answers from someone else?"
Her tone was casual—as if she didn't give a damn—but I wasn't fooled. What she really meant was: You could always go ask somebody else, but only I will tell you the truth, Jennie.
Gritting my teeth, I kept quiet until she gave up with a bored sigh.
"Very well then. Come along!"
Tossing that mane of hair over her shoulder, she surged forward, all but dragging me behind her. I struggled not to trip as I scrambled up the marble steps, ensnared by her iron grip.
The closer we came to the manor, the greater my apprehension grew.
Music spilled from inside; a faint and haunting melody barely louder than a whisper. Through the doorway, I could make out that grand entryway with its blood-red walls and polished, ebony floors. Paired with Somi's costume, I once again felt like Alice about to enter a terrifying, Gothic Wonderland. The comparison seemed even more fitting once I caught sight of a person standing beside the winding staircase, frowning down ather wristwatch.
"You're late," Lisa snarled, looking up. "Another second and I was going to drag you here by your—" She noticed my current escort and broke off. Within an instant her already hard expression was replaced by one of pure ice.
"Somi."
"I found your little pet off her leash," She told her cheerfully, unhooking her arm from mine. "Don't worry. I didn't let her stray too far—"
"Jennie."
I stiffened at her tone; hidden within it was a silent command. Come here. Now. I obeyed, heels scraping the floor in my haste to reach her side. When I came close enough she shifted to block me from view, though she never took her eyes off Somi for a second.
"Leave."
"Let's chat again sometime, Jennie," Somi purred, unconcerned by the hostility. "You just say the word." I jumped at her not-so-subtle insinuation. Luckily, Lisa didn't seem to notice the petty hint.
"Get out."
"Oh, don't be so cruel, Lisa." Somi pouted, her expression full of mock hurt. "Luckily, for the sake of your manners, I have a previous engagement …"
She took her sweet time gliding past us while Lisa tracked her every movement with unwavering precision. When she finally disappeared down a hallway she waited, as if to make sure that she was really gone before she finally turned to me.
"I thought I told you to stay away from her?"
"She … I …" My voice faltered, and to my utter shame, not all of it had to do with fear.
Her eyes smoldered, a frozen shade of gray that offset the paleness of her skin and two surprisingly pink lips. My gaze fell to them before I could help it, watching them move in sync as she spoke again. "Perhaps I just haven't made myself clear enough?"
I shivered in anticipation as her fingers came to brush my collar bone, raising goosebumps. The brief contact seemed to trigger something; unwelcome images from last night flooded my brain one by one. Blood, pain, scarlet …
I couldn't stop myself from reaching up to brush the skin along my throat in her wake, as if remembering the feel of her there. However, the act only served to draw her attention downward. For the first time that night, she seemed to realize what I was wearing. In one, long sweep, her eyes skimmed the low v-neck, before honing in on the pale flesh bared through the high slit.
"I told her to bring you the gray," she said, no doubt referring to another gown Jisoo had been meant to dress me in—but she didn't sound angry, more resigned.
At least she wasn't threatening to burn my clothes again. Before I could relish the indifference, she hooked her hand around the back of my head and swiftly undid the ties of my mask. I blinked as the black silk was withdrawn. Somehow, I felt more naked then than I had lying beneath her wearing nothing at all.
Her eyes saw more than just my face, it seemed. They bore deep, past my fragile defenses, sensing the fear that I couldn't even begin to hide. It was too intense. Too searching …and I was frozen in place.
Don't look away. The thought was instinctual; the same impulse that warned you not to turn your back on a wild animal—that the moment you did, it would attack, hunt, make you its prey.
I could only try my hardest not to move an inch as Lisa stared me down. Though, in the end, I didn't know what in my expression caused her to abruptly turn away, with my mask still clenched in her fist.
She didn't order me to follow, not that she had to. I dutifully crept in her shadow, down another corridor and into a wide, open room. Crimson carpet covered the floor in eerie contrast to the dark, paneled walls. A glittering chandelier cast sharp bits of light, bright enough to rival the moon revealed through a bay window. A single, closed door ominously waited at one end.
There, Lisa faced me once again.
When she didn't speak right away, I allowed myself to observe her surreptitiously from head to toe. Tonight she wore another exquisitely tailored suit, without a mask shielding those gray eyes—surprise, surprise.
This devil needed no disguise. Though if she had worn one, I had no trouble picturing what it might have been: the snarling face of a demon.
"I don't know what Jisoo's told you," She began in a grim tone that snapped me back to reality. "But make no mistake, Jennie; you're playing with fire."
My breath caught. "Am I?"
I half-expected a scathing laugh in response. Or for her to make some taunt about how my presence really didn't matter. I was merely another lost soul tucked into her devilish pocket, after all. But tonight she seemed …distant. We might as well have been miles apart, though we stood side by side, shoulders nearly touching.
"You have no idea."
She turned to face me fully, gaze boring into my own.
"You don't know how hard I tried to convince him that you were worthless. A necessary evil. That we only needed your contract long enough to—" she broke off, and seemed to change tact. "I hope you've gotten your bit of fun out of this, Jennie, because trust me when I say that it's all over."
"This hasn't exactly been fun for me," I stammered, shocked by the change in her mood. In a matter of seconds she went from ice to smoldering fire. Her eyes burned with an intense light that I couldn't recall ever seeing before—not even when she'd fed.
"Oh really?"
I gulped back a hasty reply. Did she assume that I got my kicks from throwing myself into dangerous situations?
Can you blame her? My inner voice objected. What kind of sane woman signs up for virtual slavery?
Unable to think of an answer, I took a page from her book and changed the subject. "So, what happens now?"
If it was even possible, those four words seemed to irritate her further. The tension wafting from her flared in intensity, like gasoline dumped on a pile of sparking tinder.
"What happens," she began, taking a step in my direction, "is that you finally get to play out those dramatic little fantasies I'm sure you've been entertaining about me—" Before I could react, she seized a wayward curl and pulled. Rather than tuck it into place, she let it hang there, wild and disgruntled while her gaze held mine for what seemed like an eternity. I swayed on my feet when she finally turned away. "You're about to meet the real Big Bad Wolf, Jennie Kim," she called over her shoulder. "How fitting; you're even wearing the right color."
That morbid comparison echoed in my brain—though I was sure that Little Red Riding Hood had never felt quite as helpless as I did right then.
"What is it?" Lisa demanded.
I jumped at the hostility edging her tone, but it was only when I turned towards the doorway that I realized that someone else stood there in the shadows, watching us. A pair of familiar, hawkish eyes flickered over mine and my stomach twisted.
"I'm just here to let you know that the 'party' has begun," the man said. His name ran across the edges of my consciousness in a whisper. Mikhail.
"How kind of you," Lisa remarked in a tone that was anything but grateful.
"It's the least I could do," Mikhail replied, voice equally as cutting. "After all, we do have a guest in our midst tonight. Though, if that is the best Jisoo could do with her—" He glanced over my dress and frowned. "Then, perhaps it's time to purchase the services of another shiftspinner, Lisa. Though, to be completely honest I didn't mind her in all that white."
"We'll be down."
Mikhail shrugged, though he had the sense to finally turn on his heel. "Oh," he called over his shoulder. "Before I forget my manners …welcome home. Though he may call himself by another name, the prodigal son has returned."
It sounded like a riddle. Prodigal son? Another name? A milieu of questions swelled in my mind, but for once, I knew better than to push my luck by even asking.
Lisa wasn't in the mood to humor me. She glared at Mikhail's retreating form until he disappeared down the hall. Once again, I was left alone to face my Devil's wrath.
"Put this on," She growled, shoving the mask into my hand. Without another word she turned and left the room.
My fingers shook as I clumsily tied the silk strings behind my head, all the while racing after her. She made no effort to slow down, and I was forced to sprint down the hallway with my vision obscured by the narrow eye-holes of my mask.
"Jennie."
The sound of her voice was my only warning before she came to a sudden stop—luck seemed to be on my side, as by some miracle I was able to stop myself before completely plowing into her from behind.
We stood before another pair of closed doors. Once again, music drifted from beyond, so faint that I could only just make out a single, mystifying melody.
"Let's refresh," Lisa began with her back still turned to me. I flinched as her hand caught my own, fingers clenching tight—but there wasn't any comfort in the gesture, just cold, cruel possession. "Once we pass through these doors, I am no longer 'Lisa,' understood? If you need to address me at all—which you shouldn't—you are to call me only Mam, preferably Master."
There was no mockery inhertone this time, just a grim insistence that made my toes curl in my heels.
"I-I understand."
She didn't acknowledge the response. Not even to shoot me one of those infamous glares. I received no words of reassurance at all, before she finally pulled open the doors …
And we entered a whole new realm.